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Organizational
Overview
The Florida Legislature created the
original School Readiness Program in 1999 and the
Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten Program (VPK) in January 2005
because it recognized that effective
school readiness programs increase children’s chances of
achieving future educational success and becoming
productive members of society.
The goal was to better utilize public
funds to benefit all preschool children,
especially those identified as most at risk of future
school failure.
The
local Coalition was established in May 2000 and
currently administers a program of almost $11 million
of local, state and federal funds that provides child
care scholarships to local income-eligible
families and the Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten Program (VPK)
for all eligible four year olds to increase the
readiness of children to begin Kindergarten.
The
Coalition oversees a broad range of support services to
ensure a system of high quality child care and preschool
education for children in Sarasota County.
The Coalition serves well over 3000+
children each year and assists over 250 child care
providers to create and maintain high quality learning
environments
The
Early Learning Coalition of
Sarasota both directly provides services and grants
contracts to community partners that:
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Offers comprehensive Resource and Referral Services
related to locating quality child care options in
Sarasota County
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Administers financial scholarships for preschool and
child care for income-eligible families
-
Administers the Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK)
program
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Ensures that local child care providers meet
legislatively-mandated requirements related to
curriculum, developmentally appropriate practices
and Florida Educational Standards
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Oversees the implementation of a local Quality
Rating System for child care providers to support
high quality early learning environments
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Provides scholarships for teachers for additional
education and training
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Sponsors an Annual Provider Conference and
community-wide trainings on topics such as literacy,
curriculum and social emotional development
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Provides individualized classroom consultations to
assist preschool teachers and child care providers
with children they are concerned about
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Maintains a Resource Room for providers with a
variety of materials, activities and books to
support professional growth and development
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Offers developmental, hearing and vision screenings
for children
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Offers on-site technical assistance/mentoring to
assist directors and teachers in any area they feel
they need help – classroom management, room
arrangement, routines, appropriate practices
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Purchases curriculum and other program materials
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Offers mini-grants for materials that providers need
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Distributes a monthly newsletter and comprehensive
training calendar to keep providers informed about
workshops and activities
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Offers targeted initiatives that enhance
infant/toddlers programs
ELC
of Sarasota Board of Directors meets the third Wednesday
of the month at 6:00pm at the Landings. Call for more
information. |
